**Winner of the Agatha Award for Best First Novel!**Get Book Two in the series for only 99 cents then binge-read the entire 7 book series (including two novellas)!

A murdered mother of the bride. A list of suspects longer than a cathedral-length train. The question is: who didn't want the MOB dead?

Society wedding planner Annabelle Archer is no stranger to wedding day stress, but a dead body at her latest fete takes the cake. When suspicion falls on her best friend and caterer Richard Gerard, she knows she must find the real culprit before his career is ruined along with her reputation for solving problems. But it’s no easy feat since the slain mother-of-the-bride was the most hated socialite in the city. As Annabelle navigates DC’s powerful social scene to unmask the culprit, there’s no telling how many more victims the killer will claim or if Annabelle and her friends will be among them.

Better Off Wed is the first book in the Annabelle Archer cozy mystery series. If you like charming characters, fast-paced comedy, and behind-the-scenes glimpses into the wild world of weddings, then you’ll love Laura Durham’s Agatha award-winning mystery.

Get Better Off Wed to discover the award-winning mystery series today!

Interview with the AuthorQ - So, what makes the Annabelle Archer series special?

A - The Annabelle Archer wedding planner mysteries are based on my 20 plus years of planning society weddings in Washington, DC. That means I’ve seen tons of crazy things happen, and I’ve worked with lots of colorful characters. I bring that light-hearted sense of fun and zany characters into the novels. A lot of the humorous details I include in my books actually happened at my weddings! And since the books are about weddings, there is plenty of food, décor, and behind the scenes details.

The Annabelle Archer books are fast-paced cozy mysteries featuring a female protagonist with a little romance and comedy thrown in. You'll find the series focuses on the murder mystery and amateur sleuth genre overall, with a jewelry heist caper and ghost story in the mix to keep things interesting. Plus, Richard acquired a Yorkie in Review To A Kill, so the latest books are also for fans of animal or dog mysteries.

I’m working on an Annabelle cookbook to share the recipes for all the culinary treats mentioned in the books. Richard is a caterer, after all, and he loves food and cooking! So, in a way these books are also culinary mysteries.

Q – In what order should I read the books?

A – You won’t be lost if you read the books in this cozy mystery series out of order but if you do want to read them in order, I'd suggest the following sequence:

- Better Off Wed- For Better Or Hearse- Dead Ringer—A Novella- Review To A Kill - Death on the Aisle- Night of the Living Wed—A Novella- Groomed for MurderQ - So, why should readers give these books a try?

A - Because the Annabelle Archer cozy mystery series is fun, light, and the perfect escape or beach reading. Plus, the first book in the series won the Agatha Award for the Best First Novel.

Enter your mobile number or email address below and we'll send you a link to download the free Kindle App. Then you can start reading Kindle books on your smartphone, tablet, or computer - no Kindle device required.

About the Author

Laura Durham has been writing for as long as she can remember and has been plotting murders since she began planning weddings in Washington, DC over 20 years ago.

BETTER OFF WED won the Agatha Award for Best First Novel and two other novels in the series followed. After taking a hiatus from publishing to have two children and plan 500 or so weddings, Laura returned to the mystery world in 2017 with a new Annabelle novella, DEAD RINGER. Laura continues to plan a few weddings per year while working on more books in the Annabelle Archer Wedding Planner mystery series.

When she isn't writing or wrangling brides, Laura loves traveling with her family, stand up paddling, and reading obsessively.

This just couldn't hold my interest. There was an eclectic mix of characters but they were stereotypes that quickly became annoying. Annabelle & Kate had many theories on who the killer was based on socialite gossip and each was sometimes quite a stretch. When they were actually presented with a logical next suspect they didn't even bat an eyelash that way. Instead, the worst pet peeve of mysteries happened, the answer had nothing to do with anything they'd speculated or investigated, new facts were added at the end that had nothing to do with anything else but somehow proves the whole thing, and none of it even made much sense. It was even completed with a version of the famous Scooby Doo line: "if you hadn't been such a busybody I would've gotten away with it." Puh-leeese!I'm irritated at the book, the people, and the time I wasted.

Judging from the sales rank, Laura Durham doesn’t really need yet another glowing, positive review for BETTER OFF WED, but I’m going to post this anyway.

BETTER OFF WED is a charming book, sheer fun to read, light where it needs to be, serious where it has to be, funny in surprising spots, and well written with a sharp plot and clear, crisp language.

I actually read BETTER OFF WED back in its first incarnation in 2005 when I both met Laura and acquired a signed copy of her book at the Malice Domestic Convention. By the way, she’s as delightful as her book. When I saw that she had revised the book and was putting it out there again, I got the new version via Kindle. I’m glad I did. Of course in the ensuing years I’d forgotten the ins-and-outs of the plot, so I could thoroughly enjoy reading it again.

Laura Durham’s main characters—Annabelle the wedding planner and Richard the caterer-- are delights, both fresh, charming, intriguing, energetic. I particularly enjoyed the contradictions in protagonist Annabelle--outwardly organized and efficient, but with an apartment so messy that it borders classic Oscar Madison. She’s protective of her heart and her career and both are at risk as the story develops. Richard the caterer is also a great character, smart, tart-tongued, and capable of great one-liner zings. He is admittedly self-interested in salvaging his caterer’s reputation, but very protective of Annabelle and a loyal ally as they seek out the truth behind the murder of the mother of the bride at Annabelle’s big, break-through society wedding.

The pace is fast, boom boom boom, no long monologues or pointless digressions in this tightly woven story. Durham’s sense of place and world building are excellent and authentic, as well they should be given that she sets her story in her own world of Georgetown and Washington D.C.

Better Off Wed by Laura Durham is a hilarious yet deadly cozy mystery. I haven't read too many novels featuring the wedding planner as a woman sleuth. Annabelle Archer is a wedding planner who hates the current MOB (mother of bride). With her best friends as the caterer and planning assistant, Annabelle hopes to make it through the wedding. The MOB is one of the nastiest ones to deal with...Annabelle jokes with her two friends about killing the MOB. And as fate has it...that's the one person who turned up dead...and guess who found her...the trio.

Detective shows up and questions the friends as well as the rest of the wedding party. Apparently, Richard, Annabelle's caterer friend, is being suspected of murder! That's when Annabelle and her friends go about solving who did it. Only as they question more leads...others die and Annabelle's apartment is trashed. But that isn't the worst part. The killer is after her...not knowing why until it's almost too late. The police arrest one killer but is that the real killer? Annabelle doesn't think so...her gut says otherwise. The Detective on the case shows interest in Annabelle yet she's not interested in romance yet...her blushes say it all. From an older woman as a nosy neighbor that is trying to set her up with men to her friends encouraging her to date...Annabelle will have her hands full of trouble.

Better Off Wed is sweet, funny, and sexy. The mysterious plot hooked me instantly. The web of danger and intrigue kept me interested. I couldn't put the novel down...Laura Durham is a talented writer. I loved her cast of characters. I didn't know who the killer was until it was revealed to me later. I can't wait to read the rest of the books in this exciting series. Definitely, a page-turning read. Overall, I highly recommend this book to readers everywhere.

I am so glad I discovered this series. It has everything I could ask for in a cozy mystery. I love the relationships between Annabelle, Richard, and Kate. I always enjoy a story with characters I could see being friends of mine. Actually, Richard reminds me a lot of my deceased brother, so I felt right at home. I enjoyed the humor along with the mystery, which was interesting as well. Now I'm off to read "For Better or Hearse."

I really enjoyed this--a little formulaic, but why else do we read genre fiction if not for the comfort level of somewhat knowing what to expect. Well-written. I noted only one typo and a bit that was out of sequence. Annabelle and Richard had a falling out and they worked it out, but suddenly, it still was unsettle. No mayo thing, but detracted from the almost total lack of errors. Enjoyable characters. Never have read anything about a wedding planner before...

I laughed out loud throughout most of this book. Even though it deals with a murder and the miseries of a Mother-of-the Bride this book has a very humorous bent. The ending will be a surprise. I thought I had it all figured out but was I wrong! You will love the main characters. Annabelle is fun with a great way of putting things, Richard is a hoot, and you will spend most of the book trying to figure out Katie's mixed up sayings. I've already bought the next book, 'For Better or Hearse'